In this Witt's Wise Words, VP of Sales, CDK Global, Bill Wittenmyer discusses how sales is a numbers game. If you’re selling the same product that others are selling, you can only expect to close a percentage of customers that come into your store.  So, how do you get more appointments?

Recently I was waiting in line at an airport, along with hundreds of other travelers. A couple appeared out of nowhere, shoving their way to the front of the line and complaining loudly, as if they were the only people affected by the long wait. When another traveler told them to get in line, the pair acted shocked, as if they had never seen all of us standing there.

I call this syndrome “Only Person in the World” disease, and unfortunately it seems to be spreading in our society.

Apparently, this disease gives people the ability to block out the existence of everyone around them as they travel around in little bubbles of self-absorption. The scary part is, most people with the disease don’t even realize they have it!

I don’t know what causes this disease, but I see the impact of it everywhere. It might even be hurting your dealership. If one or more of your employees have “Only Person in the World” disease, it could have a serious and negative impact on your customer relationships and reputation. If you’re a salesperson with this disease, your career is probably suffering.

Here’s how to diagnose “Only Person in the World” disease:

If you greet every customer and answer every phone call while saying to yourself, “I hope this person buys a car today, I really need the commission.”  What you should be asking is “What does this person need today and how can I help to fulfill that need?” Trust me; if you help enough people, sales will naturally follow.

When you encounter stressful situations or a wrench is thrown into your plans, you ask yourself “Why does stuff like this always happen to me?” News flash: Stuff like this happens to everyone. It’s called life. If you paid more attention to others, you’d realize the same stuff is happening to them too.

The good news is, there is a treatment for “Only Person in the World” disease. It’s called mindfulness. I realize that’s a new-agey sounding term, but all it really means is being aware and living in the present moment. I think this is rare these days.

So many people walk around with their noses in their phones, completely unaware of their surroundings. They’re so afraid to miss a single text or Facebook update, yet they’re missing opportunities to connect with real people around them.

It’s also common to spend too much time ruminating about the past or worrying about the future. The fact is, you can’t change the past and the future will take care of itself as long as you execute on your plan today! However, this takes awareness.

Many experts say that the best way to develop mindfulness is to meditate, but not everyone has the time or patience for that. Here are a few tips on how to develop more awareness while at work, that require little time and effort.

Observe

Once or twice a day, take a five-minute timeout and simply observe your surroundings. Observe the environment, your customers and co-workers. Do this without an agenda; you’re not looking for something. Look and listen without thinking or judging, but if you notice something that strikes a chord, jot it down. Observation is a developed skill that allows you to spot opportunities.

Empathize

To build trust with customers, you need to connect with them. The best way to do that is by tapping into and validating their feelings. Practice this skill with your co-workers. Start a conversation by asking someone what’s happening in their life. If they seem stressed, ask them why. Most people welcome the chance to talk about themselves to someone who cares.

You don’t have to try and solve anyone’s problem. Listening and validating is enough. You might even be surprised at how this helps to strengthen bonds with your co-workers. Now imagine how effective this will be with your customers.

Focus

We all have a million thoughts, memories, ideas and dreams running around in our heads. Buddhists call this “Monkey Mind.” Most of these thoughts don’t serve any purpose other than to distract us from the present and from what we should be doing.

Do you know how many hours of the day you are actually productive at work? If not, try tracking your time. How many of your CRM tasks do you complete on a daily basis, versus re-scheduling or finding an excuse to delete? What would happen if you actually completed all of your tasks on a daily basis?

If you want to be successful, it’s important to find a way to focus your mind, become productive and do the things you know you should be doing, no matter how much you really don’t feel like doing them. Whether it’s music, meditation or another productivity technique, only you can find the best method for you.

If you suspect you have “Only Person in the World” disease, try following these tips. Developing mindfulness will make you more aware of—and more responsive to—opportunities, customers and prospects. Not to mention, you won’t be annoying to others.

One of my college professors was famous for a crazy stunt that he pulled every semester. On the first day of class, he would introduce himself, take off his shirt and jump out the window. A few minutes later he returned to the classroom, calmly put on his shirt and asked, “Do I have your attention?”

He certainly did.

It turns out this guy wasn’t crazy at all. Do you know how hard it is to capture the attention of a bunch of jaded students? I would guess it’s almost as difficult as capturing the attention of a bunch of jaded car shoppers.

Many car dealers have mastered the art of getting attention. Think of the inflatable gorillas, wavy tube men and thousands of balloons that adorn lots everywhere. Think of the dealers that don 10-gallon hats and scream at the camera that this is the best deal of all time.

It’s one thing to be able to get attention. But the real question is, once you have that attention, can you deliver an experience that meets customer expectations?

The professor who jumped out the window was probably the best teacher I ever had. While the stunt that he pulled made him memorable, what made him great was that he delivered in the classroom on a daily basis with passion, purpose and knowledge.

To keep your customers’ attention, you must deliver as well. If you’re passionate about what you do, people will be drawn to you. If you have purpose, people will admire you. If you are knowledgeable, people will respect you. And years later, those same people will remember you as one of the greatest salespeople they ever dealt with.

But what if, as a salesperson, you’re not feeling the passion or purpose? How knowledgeable must you be? Here are a few tips.

Choose Passion

Maybe you decided to become a car salesperson because you’re still figuring out what you want to do with your life. Maybe you secretly want to be a writer or an astronaut, and you’re just doing this to pay the bills. The good news is, you’re not alone. I know a lot of people that fell into this industry, then eventually fell in love with it.

Here’s the thing: passion isn’t something that strikes you like lightning. Passion is ignited from within. You can choose to ignite it, or not. Once lit, passion can be nurtured or ignored. But if you choose to embrace what you’re doing right now, and nurture that passion, you’ll be a lot more successful. Why wouldn’t you make that choice?

Find a Purpose

Everyone needs a car. Despite the bad rap our industry gets sometimes, selling cars is a noble endeavor. Be proud of what you do. And if selling or servicing cars isn’t enough of a purpose in life, find another one.

Maybe your purpose is as simple as feeding your family. Maybe your purpose is to invest every penny you have so you can retire at age 50 and travel the world. Or you want to help those less fortunate than you—or all of these things. When you wake up in the morning, let your purpose in life drive you to be the very best at what you do that day. Remember that your job is the fuel for your purpose in life, so be grateful for the opportunity.

Never Stop Learning

The average car shopper spends 14.5 hours researching and shopping for a car, according to a Cox Automotive study. Approximately 20% or 3 hours of that time is spent in the dealership, which means the average consumer spends 11.5 hours researching which vehicle they want.

How many hours does the average salesperson spend learning about their brand, the various makes/models and learning about their competition? If you want to win your customers’ respect, you must be at least as knowledgeable as them, but preferably more so. You must become the expert and the teacher.

It’s one thing to be able to capture someone’s attention. It’s another thing entirely to keep it. To be successful, you must do your job every day with passion, purpose and knowledge. When you make that commitment, you’ll be remembered as one of the best.

At its core, sales is a numbers game. It always has been and always will be. If you’re selling the same product that others are selling, you can only expect to close a percentage of customers that come into your store. In our industry, top performers close 50 to 60 percent of their appointments.

Therefore, logic dictates the only way to increase sales is to make more appointments. We all know you can’t rely on “ups” alone.  So, how do you get more appointments? It’s pretty simple. You make more phone calls.

The person who makes the most phone calls makes the most connections. Those who make the most connections, make the most appointments and ultimately close the most sales. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Yet, many salespeople routinely struggle to make the necessary phone calls. This is why 30 percent of auto dealerships now use call centers for the type of “heavy lifting” phone calls that their sales team can’t, won’t or don’t do.

I’m talking about calling hot leads, cold leads and equity leads generated from data mining your CRM for potential customers who in a buying position, about to go out of warranty or come off lease.

What’s that I hear? Your salespeople are already making these phone calls? Are you sure about that? 

Just because your team is making some phone calls, doesn’t mean they’re making the right kind of calls, or all the calls they could be making. Let me share a few common myths that I keep hearing, and the reality of what’s going on.

Myth #1: My salespeople are making those calls.

Fact: Your salespeople aren’t making enough calls.

Call center data shows it takes an average 4.8 phone calls to connect with a customer. The average salesperson follows up with a hot lead two or three times and virtually ignores cold leads. Plus, salespeople get caught up in other activities of daily meetings, talking to ups, customer appointments and lunch. There’s isn’t enough time in the day for them to make the hundreds of calls required for prospecting.

Call center agents make phone calls, every day, all day long. That’s the only thing they do, and they are trained to know how to handle each type call professionally and use the right call guide to get information dealers need.

Myth #2: My salespeople are motivated to make phone calls.

Fact: Salespeople are not paid to make phone calls.

Salespeople are paid on commission when they sell cars. So, they will always be chasing the down funnel leads they believe are close to closing—and rightly so. They are not data mining your CRM or creating strategies that will fill their pipeline full of prospects three months away from purchasing a vehicle.

Call center agents create organized outgoing call campaigns and execute those campaigns with precision. They don’t lose interest in customers who don’t call them back. They contact cold leads and nurture up funnel leads. Then, when a lead becomes “hot,” they hand it over to your sales team.

Myth #3: My salespeople have better phone skills than an outsourced agent.

Fact: Not all salespeople are great on the phone.

Do you hire salespeople based on the impression they made from a phone call or from their in-person interviews? If the latter, how do you know what their phone skills are? Most sales people are great face to face but many lack the patience needed for effective phone skills.

How much phone skills training do your salespeople receive? Or, do you just assume that they should know what to say and how to say it? Converting conversations into appointments is a specific and learned skill. Call center agents are trained how to be personable and sound authentic. Asking for an appointment too soon is guaranteed to drive the customer away. You need to earn the right to ask.

Myth #4: My salespeople are great at making follow up calls

Fact: Some salespeople suck at follow up calls

It’s not their fault. When a customer leaves your lot without purchasing a vehicle, the salesperson has often done everything they can do. When they call to follow up, they don’t have an enticing offer to lure the customer back in, so they resort to the “checking in” call or asking if the customer has made a decision yet. No wonder customers avoid answering their phones.

However, 95 percent of customers contacted by a third party are willing to take a short survey about their customer experience. This is what call center agents do. These surveys provide valuable insights into what your sales team is doing right and wrong so that you can coach them up effectively.

Additionally, sometimes the customer shares the real reason why they didn’t buy, which is not always the same reason they give the salesperson. When the real objection is identified, the customer feedback is given to a sales manager who has strategies to overcome that objection.

Yes, your salespeople “should” be making phone calls. But are they? That’s the only question you need to answer, and hopefully, it’s an honest answer. Because whoever out dials, out connects and outsells.

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